Disk clamps are utilized in computer disk drives to maintain the desired positioning of one or more disks relative to a drive spindle. If disk slippage occurs after assembly, and particularly after the disks are formatted (e.g., after bum-in of servo tracks), the read/write capabilities of the system may be severely compromised.
As such, much attention has been directed to the provision of effective disk clamping assemblies. See e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,486,962 to Boutaghou; U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,024 to Briggs et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,374 to Katakura et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,548,457 to Brooks et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,349 to Morehouse et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,663,851 to Jeong et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,269 to Lee; U.S. Pat. No. 5,712,746 to Moir et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,790,346 to Fletcher; U.S. Pat. No. 5,828,519 to Sasa; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,847,900 to Iwabuchi. As reflected by the art, several interrelated design considerations exist.
Of particular importance, it has been recognized that the localized provision of clamping forces to a disk clamp, and in turn to the clamped disks, may result in undesirable disk flatness distortion. As such, effective clamping assemblies should provide for the relatively uniform application of clamping forces. Relatedly, effective clamping assemblies should provide for a highly predictable clamping force. It has also been recognized that effective clamping assemblies should allow for ready assembly and provide consistent assembly positioning in large-scale production operations. For example, effective clamping assemblies should provide for precise and repeatable positioning of the clamped storage disks, both axially and in lateral orientation. Such positioning is important for accurate functioning of read/write heads.
In addition to the noted criteria, the present inventor has recognized a number of other design considerations that will become increasingly important as data storage capacity requirements per unit space continue to increase.